Meet Peter Thanos

Peter Thanos traces his interest in dopamine back to a psychology class
on the brain and behavior, which he took while an undergraduate at
Queen’s University in Canada. Intrigued by the relationship between
brain chemistry and behavior, he volunteered to work in the lab with his
professor and got hooked on research.

Peter Thanos

As he continued his studies, he became aware of the groundbreaking
research linking dopamine with addiction going on at Brookhaven Lab
using positron emission tomography (PET) by Nora Volkow, Gene-Jack Wang,
and Joanna Fowler. After completing his Ph.D. at Eastern Virginia
Medical School, he went to Stony Brook University to work with
researchers who, in collaboration with the Brookhaven neuroimaging
group, were beginning to develop the new microPET technology for
small-animal studies. He joined the Lab as a neuroscientist in 1999.

As a member of the Lab's Center for
Translational Neuroimaging at BNL and NIAAA Laboratory of
Neuroimaging, he has been instrumental in assessing and using microPET
in addiction research. Thanos’ Behavioral Neuropharmacology Lab has
conducted proof-of-principle experiments to demonstrate microPETs
usefulness as a research tool to complement a variety of different
behavioral studies in rodents.

He’s also made a point of extending the research opportunity he had
as a student to three or four undergraduate students each semester — and
sometimes more in the summer. “Even if students have had no prior
research experience,” he says, “they can produce great work. The key is
to find the students who are motivated and interested.” With many of
these students going on to medical school, graduate school, dental and
veterinary schools, it’s clear that Thanos’ ability to spot and spark
that motivation pays off for the students as well as their mentor.

When not at the lab, Peter enjoys spending time with his wife, Renie,
and daughter Kiki. With a wink, Thanos says Kiki has already expressed
interest in doing a pre-school science project in a few years!

One of ten national laboratories overseen and primarily
funded by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE),
Brookhaven National Laboratory conducts research in the physical,
biomedical, and environmental sciences, as well as in energy technologies
and national security. Brookhaven Lab also builds and operates major
scientific facilities available to university, industry and government
researchers. Brookhaven is operated and managed for DOE’s Office of Science
by Brookhaven Science Associates, a limited-liability company founded by
Stony Brook University, the largest academic user of Laboratory facilities,
and Battelle, a nonprofit, applied science and technology organization.